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<e    • 


A  UTHOR: 

DOLE 


J 


CHARLES 


FLETCHER 


TITLE: 


THE  GOLDEN  RULE  IN 
BUSINESS 

PLACE: 

NEW  YORK 

DATE: 

[18961 


COLUMBIA  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARIES 
PRESERVATION  DEPARTMENT 


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174 
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Dole,  Charles  F[letcher]  1845- 19  3  7 

The  Golden  rule  in  business,  by  Charles  F.  Dole. 
York,  Boston,  T.  Y.  Crowell  &  company  [«1896] 

xi,  13-67  p.    181*". 


New 


1.  Business  ethics. 

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GIVEN    BY 


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Booklets  in  I^ew  k  Fancy  Bindings. 

BLESSING    OF    CHEERFULNESS    (THE).      By    the 

Rev.  J.  R.  Miller,  D.D. 
CHILDREN'S  WING  (THE).     By  Elizabeth  Glover. 
CONFLICTING  DUTIES.     By  E.  S.  Elliott. 
CULTURE  AND  REFORM.     By  Anna  Robertson  Brown. 
DO  WE  BELIEVE  IT  ?    By  E.  S.  Elliott. 
EXPECTATION  CORNER.     By  E.  S.  Elliott. 
FAMILY  MANNERS.     By  Elizabeth  Glover. 
GENTLE  HEART  (THE).     By  the  Rev.  J.  R.  Miller,  D.D. 
GIRLS:    FAULTS  AND    IDEALS.     By  the  Rev.  J.  R. 

Miller,  D.D.  ,      _ 

GOLDEN  RULE  IN  BUSINESS  (THE).     By  the  Rev. 

C.  F.  Dole. 
HAPPY  LIFE  (THE).     By  Charles  W.  Eliot,  LL.D. 

i.  COLE.     By  Emma  Gellibrand. 
ESSICA'S  FIRST  PRAYER.     Bv  Hesba  Stretton. 
:iNG    OF  THE  GOLDEN    RIVER   (THE).     By  John 

Ruskin.  .  ,,,..„ 

LADDIE.     By  the  author  of  "  Miss  Toosey's  Mission." 
LOVE  AND  FRIENDSHIP.      By  Ralph  Waldo  Emerson. 
MASTER  AND  MAN.     By  Count  Lyof  N.  Tolstoi. 
MISS  TOQSEY'S  MISSION.     Bv  the  author  of  "Laddie." 
PATHS  OF  DUTY   (THE):    Counsels  to  Young  Men. 

By  Dean  Farrar. 
REAL  HAPPENINGS.     By  Mrs.  Mary  B.  CMin. 
SECRETS  OF  HAPPY  HOME  LIFE.     By  the  Rev.  J. 

R.  Miller,  D.D. 
SHIPS  AND  HAVENS.  By  the  Rev.  Henry  Van  Dyke.D.D. 
STILLNESS  AND  SERVICE.     By  E.  S.  Elliott. 
SWEETNESS  AND  LIGHT.     By  Matthew  Arnold. 
TALKS  ABOUT  A  FINE  ART.     By  Elizabeth  Glover. 
TELL  JESUS.     By  Anna  Shipton. 
TOO  GOOD  TO  BE  TRUE.     Bv  E.  S.  Elliott. 
TWO  PILGRIMS  (THE).     By  Count  Lyof  N.  Tolstoi. 
VICTORY  OF  OUR   FAITH  (THE),     By  Anna  Robert- 
son Brown,  Ph.D. 
WHAT    IS    WORTH    WHILE.       By    Anna    Robertson 

Brown,  Ph.D. 
WHAT  MEN  LIVE  BY.     Bv  Count  Lvof  N.  Tolstoi. 
WHEN    THE    KING    COMES    TO    HIS   OWN.      By 

E.  S.  Elliott.  _       ,^ 

WHERE    LOVE    IS,    THERE    GOD    IS    ALSO.      By 

Count  Lyof  N.  Tolstoi. 
YOUNG  MEN  :  FAULTS  AND  IDEALS.     By  the  Rev. 

J.  R.  Miller,  D.D. 

For  sate  by  all  booksellers,  or  sent,  postpaid,  by  the 
publishers,  on  receipt  of  35c. 

Thomas  Y.  Crowell  &  Co.,  NewYork  &  Boston. 


3tt  ^miu^ti 


BY 


CHARLES  F.  DOLE 


NEW  YORK :  46  East  i4Th  Street. 

THOMAS  Y.  CROWELL  &  COMPANY. 

BOSTON  :  100  Purchase  Strbbf. 


,'l 


Copyrightt  1895. 
By  Flood  &  Vincent. 

Copyright,  1896. 
By  To  Y.  Crowell  &  Co. 


/7f 


A 


o 

CO 

a 

o 


THIS  LITTLE  BOOK  IS  DEDICATED 
TO  MY  GOOD  FRIEND, 

BISHOP  J.  H.  VINCENT, 

IN  EARNEST  SYMPATHY 

V/ITH  HIS  WISH  FOR  THE  GROWTH 

OF  A  STRONGER  FAITH 

IN  PRACTICAL  CHRISTIANITY 


319536 


^Wlt^giipiiiii 


.■.yi..'..'.^*.,i:*.£^-,%i'_. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE. 


Introduction 

Theory  and  practice  ;  The  moral  universe  ; 
The  sway  of  the  Golden  Rule. 

I. 


IX 


13 


The  Golden  Rule  :  What  it  Means    .    . 
What  the  rule  says  ;  Certain  puzzling  ques- 
tions ;  How  men  explain  away  the  Golden 
Rule ;  The  spirit  of  Jesus  :  a  new  inter- 
pretation. 

II. 

Is  THE  Golden  Rule  Practicable  for  This 

World? i7 

What  all  men  admit ;  A  significant  fact ; 
Love  and  intelligence ;  What  the  world  says 
of  unbrotherly  brothers ;  In  the  realm  of 
friendship ;  Among  various  brotherhoods  ; 
The  Christian  Church  an  exception ;  The 
real  church  ;  The  undoubted  empire  of  the 
Golden  Rule. 

III. 

The  Golden  Rule  and  Nature   .... 
A  law  of  cooperation  ;  What  kind  of  min- 
isters the  world  wants  ;  What  kind  of  teach- 
ers ;  The  good  physician  ;  The  great  artists ; 
The   kind  of  artisans  we  all  want;   The 


25 


>■,■!'  I'. ; 


VI 


Contents. 


32 


farmers  ;  Labor  and  the  Golden  Rule  ;  What 
the  Golden  Rule  does  for  women's  work ; 
What  sort  of  men  we  want  in  politics  ;  The 
Eternal  Umpire. 

IV. 
The  Golden  Rule  and  Trade     .... 
What  men  say  of  our  present  system  of 
trade ;  What  trade  is  for ;  Where  men  like 
to  trade ;  The  lines  of  justice  and  human 
service ;  The  new  competition  ;  The  law  of 
** supply  and    demand*'    translated;    The 
Golden  Rule  in  *'  the  labor  market ";  Things 
which  we  must  not  expect ;  The  ills  of  the 
present  industrial  system  and  how  their  cure 
must  come. 

V. 

The  Golden  Rule  as  a  Venture  . 

A  terrible  **if'' ;  Is  honesty  the  best  pol- 
icy ?  The  element  of  venture  ;  A  concession 
about  money-making  ;  About  bad  kinds  of 
business;  About  high  salaries  ;  The  risk  of 
unpopularity ;  Nevertheless,  it  is  safe  to  do 
right ;  The  Golden  Rule  and  human  prog- 
ress ;  Faith  and  certainty. 

VI. 

What  Makes  Success ^n 

Getting  and  giving;  The  law  of  life; 
Wherein  Jesus  succeeded  ;  The  complete 
manhood  ;  The  appeal  to  facts. 

VII. 
The  Golden  Rule  in  Organization    .    . 
The    weakness    of  the  individual;   The 


40 


\ 


51 


'.\ 


Contents. 

trend  of  modem  civilization;  How  com- 
binations work ;  What  holds  labor  unions 
together;  A  new  kind  of  combinations; 
How  the  best  will  overcome  the  worst ;  The 
binding  power  of  friendhness  ;  The  method 
of  Jesus  ;  The  new  office  of  the  church  ;  The 
church  as  it  has  been  and  the  church  as  it 
must  be  ;  A  new  and  noble  test ;  What  it  is 
to  be  a  Christian. 

Questions 


vu 


59 


f 


ll 


'« 


(^ 


\ 


INTRODUCTION. 

It  is  well  known  that  students  may  pur- 
sue the  principles  of  bookkeeping  or  navi- 
gation and  yet  not  know  how  to 
apply  these  principles  to  keeping  Tracu?e^^ 
a  set  of  books  or  sailing  a  ship. 
There  is  a  growing  suspicion  that  the  fine 
teachings  of  our  Sunday-schools  likewise  fail 
to  make  valid  connection  with  practical  life. 
Young  people  are  taught  to  recite  the  Beati- 
tudes or  to  tell  the  story  of  Jesus,  without 
being  made  to  think  what  these  magnificent 
ideas  and  this  splendid  example  have  to  do 
with  ordinary  buying  and  selling,  or  with  vot- 
ing, on  occasion,  against  the  unworthy  can- 
didates of  one*s  own  party. 

This  pamphlet  is  prepared  with  the  pur- 
pose of  showing  what  our  Christianity  has  to 
do  with  the  familiar  practices  of 
business.     It  is  written  in  the  con-  SivSse?^ 
viction  of  the  most  impressive  fact 
that  has  ever  dawned  upon  the  mind  of  man. 
This  fact  is,  that  we  live  in  a  divine  universe. 
It  is  a  realm  of  beneficent  law,  extending  to 


if 


X  Litroduction. 

every  particle  of  matter  and  to  every  event 
and  moment  of  life.  Every  intelligent  per- 
son knows  that,  so  far  as  visible  and  material 
things  go,  we  cannot  break  a  law  with  im- 
punity. We  cannot  break  the  laws  of  con- 
struction with  walls  and  bridges,  and  not 
come  to  grief  There  is  no  chance  in  all  the 
outward  world  to  cheat  or  evade,  and  not 
sooner  or  later  be  caught.  The  whole  visi- 
ble world,  however,  is  only  a  vast  system  of 
parables,  illustrations,  and  object  lessons  of 
the  vaster  world  of  thought — the  moral  and 
spiritual  world — to  which  men  belong. 

I  am  persuaded  that  the  rule  of  the  moral 
law  is  no  less  rigorous  than  the  law  of  gravi- 
tation.    If  justice  is  good  for  any 

The  sway  of  .  ,     -  11      -r  v  •     ^i, 

the  Golden      men  it  IS  Qfood  lor  all:  it  it  is  the 

Rule. 

duty  of  any  it  is  the  duty  of  all; 
It  is  universal;  it  is  inexorable;  you  cannot 
violate  it.  If  the  Golden  Rule  is  the  rule  of 
a  Christ,  it  is  the  rule  of  all  men.  If  it  holds 
good  in  heaven,  or  in  any  shining  sphere,  it 
holds  good  in  this  earth  here  and  now.  If 
physical  laws,  obeyed,  keep  our  homes  and 
our  bodies  safe,  so  this  law  only  more  surely 
keeps  our  lives  safe,  and  constitutes  the 
health  of  human  society.  As  there  is  no 
law  of  things  that  men  can  afford  to  be  ig- 


Introduction. 


XI 


norant  of  or  to  discredit,  so  they  cannot 
afford  to  doubt  this  master  law  of  the  moral 
life.  This  would  not  be  a  divine  universe  if 
the  Golden  Rule  did  not  accurately  apply  in 
this  earth  where  we  live.  The  Golden  Rule 
goes  with  our  belief  in  the  good  God.  It  is 
idle  to  talk  of  the  one  if  we  doubt  the  other. 
The  following  pages  are  designed  to  show 
how  this  is  so  and  that  it  cannot  be  other- 
wise. 


'i^} 


I 


/ 


J   >• 


Oje  <5oK)cn  Kule  in  Business. 


i\ 


I. 


THE  GOLDEN  RULE:  WHAT  IT  MEANS. 

Every  one  knows  what  the  Golden  Rule 
says :  Whatsoever  ye  would  that  men  should 
do  to  you,  do  ye  even  so  to  them. 
The  Good  Master  quotes  it  from  ^]'^l^yl 
the  Old  Testament.  The  Chinese 
have  the  same  in  another  form:  What  you 
would  not  wish  done  to  yourself  do  not  to 
others.  We  do  not  know  what  man  In  the 
distant  past  first  announced  this  rule.  What 
we  do  know  is  that  Jesus  put  new  life  and 
reality  into  it.  He  made  it  the  law  of  his 
own  beautiful  life,  and,  since  he  uttered  it, 
there  has  never  failed  from  the  earth  a  line  of 
noble  and  generous  men  and  women  who 
have  actually  tried  to  put  this  rule  into 
practice. 

As  soon  as  we  stop  to  think  about  the 
Golden  Rule,  and  especially  when  we  begin 
to  apply  it  to  the  conduct  of  business,  it  does 

13 


14         The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

not  look  so  plain  as  it  seems  when  read  by 
Certain  puz-     ^^^  "linister  in  church.     Suppose 
zhn|  ques.      a  child  asks  what  he  would  wish 
to  have  others  do  unto  him  ?    If 
he  is  foolish,  he  would  like  to  be  flattered  and 
mdulged  ;  if  he  is  lazy,  he  would  like  to  be 
excused  from  his  task  ;  if  he  is  selfish,  he 
would  like  to  be  given  more  than  his  share  of 
damties.     The  tramp  wishes  gifts  ;  the  crim- 
mal  would  like  to  be  let  out  of  jail.     The 
buyer,  too,  wishes  the  lowest  possible  price, 
as  the  seller  desires  the  highest.     How  much 
should  you  give  the  man  who  brings  provis- 
ions to  your  door?    Are  you  to  give  what 
you  would  wish,  if  you  had  caught  the  fish, 
cut  the  wood,  or  hoed  the  potatoes  ?     It  is 
evident  that  here,  as  everywhere  else  in  this 
complicated   human   life,  there  is  need  not 
merely  of  obedient  intent,  but  of  intelligence, 
judgment,  common  sense,  and  the  knowledge 
of  the  facts  of  each  case. 

Moreover  the  Golden  Rule  happens  to  be 
found  among  a  group  of  very  hard  and  radi- 
How  men  ex.  ^^^  sayings.  The  famous  Sermon 
EoiderRu^i^!^'  """^  ^^^  M^^^t  calls  the  meek, 
the  mourners,  and  the  persecuted, 
blessed  ;  it  bids  men  use  no  oaths ;  it  coun- 
sels non-resistance  ;  it  commands  us  to  love 


WJiat  it  Means. 


15 


our  enemies.  Surely,  men  say,  Jesus  cannot 
expect  to  be  taken  seriously  in  these  teach- 
ings. They  are  '  *  Counsels  of  perfection ' '  ; 
they  are  heavenly  ideals,  in  other  words,  im- 
possible for  men  who  live  in  the  real  world. 
You  accordingly  have  at  last  a  new  version  of 
the  difficult  old  rule.  It  is  said,  ' '  Do  unto 
others  as  you  would  expect  them  to  do  unto 
you, ' '  wherein  the  beauty  of  the  magnificent 
rule  has  dismally  evaporated. 

The  truth  is  that  Jesus'  teachings  cannot 
be  read,  or  interpreted,  or  applied,  like  a 
legislative  code.     The  character- 

•  , .        /•  1  •      .         1  •  •  .      .       The  spirit  of 

IStlC  Ot   his    teaching    is    not    in  its  Jesus;  anew 

form,  but  in  its  spirit.  The  Golden  ^"^^^p^^^^^*°"- 
Rule,  like  the  other  great  passages  with  which 
it  is  grouped,  is  the  effort  to  express  in  words 
what  is  more  than  words  or  acts,  namely,  a 
new  spiritual  attitude  or  temper.  Herein  is 
Jesus'  originality.  Whatever  you  do,  he 
teaches,  treat  men  as  friends,  show  yourself 
friendly,  hold  men  as  brothers,  meet  them  on 
the  street,  buy  and  sell  with  them  in  the 
friendly  temper.  Jesus'  idea  is  too  large  to 
be  fixed  in  any  single  form  of  expression.  It 
is  summed  up  in  the  splendid  figure  of  the 
sun,  pouring  its  light  upon  the  evil  and  the 
good.     So,  says  Jesus,  is  the  love  of  God. 


i6 


The  Golde7t  Rule  in  Business, 


Be  ye  therefore  the  children  of  God,  pouring 
out  your  lives  in  loving  good-will,  like  the 
Father.  This  interpretation  of  the  Golden 
Rule  relieves  us  of  the  difficulties  in  applying 
it,  made  by  a  narrow  literalism.  The  ques- 
tion is  no  longer,  what  my  customer,  my 
workman,  the  beggar,  or  the  foolish  child 
strictly  would  wish,  or  what  I  would  wish  in 
his  place.  The  larger  question  is,  What  is 
the  best  that  I  can  do,  in  each  set  of  circum- 
stances, as  a  friendly  man^  who  aims  to  give 
his  life,  after  Jesus*  fashion  and  spirit,  to  the 
welfare  of  his  brothers?  It  may  be  pure 
friendliness  that  sends  the  thief  to  jail,  that 
refuses  the  tramp,  that  imposes  difficult  tasks 
on  the  child,  that  pays  the  baker  and  fisher- 
man neither  more  nor  less  than  the  customary 
or  market  price.  The  law  of  friendly  action 
-—of  love — aiming  at  the  highest  good  of  all, 
as  it  must  be  above  the  whims  of  the  foolish 
or  selfish,  so  it  is  above  the  mere  wish  of  any 
individual,  however  kind-hearted.  This  will 
need  fuller  illustration  as  we  go  on. 


p 


II. 

IS    THE    GOLDEN    RULE    PRACTICABLE    FOR 

THIS   WORLD? 

We  ARE  ready  to  show  that  the  Golden 
Rule  is  no  idle  '^Counsel  of  perfection,''  no 
mere  theory  or  imaginary  ideal, 
but    the    highest    actual   law  of  Yd^it^^^^^^ 
human  life  here  and  now.     There 
is  fortunately  one  great  realm  of  life,  where 
no  one  can  doubt  what  we  are  saying.     It  is 
the  home.     So  far  is  the  Golden  Rule  from 
being  impracticable  in  the  realm  of  the  home, 
that  nothing  else  will  serve  to  hold  a  home 
together.     Where  selfishness  is,  where  self- 
indulgence  pushes  to  the  front,  where  there 
is  scrambling  and  quarreling,  in  that  hour  or 
day  when  the  Golden  Rule  lapses,  the  home 
is  spoiled.     The  home  begins  as  soon  as  a 
single  life  in  the  family  group  gives  itself 
in  love  for  the  welfare  of  the  others.     The 
home  is  a  success,  a  joy  to  enter,  and  a  place 
of  rest  to  stay  in,  where  all  the  members  dowa 
to  the  young  children  breathe  the  atmosphere 
of  thoughtful  helpfulness.     Better  the  tiniest 

17 


N 


\ 


1/  ) 

/ 


/ 


1 8 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business, 


house,  where  by  the  natural  conditions  of 
daily  service  the  law  of  love  has  constant  ex- 
ercise, than  the  most  sumptuous  mansion, 
whose  inmates,  being  waited  upon  by  a 
retinue  of  servants,  forget  the  cardinal  idea  of 
the  home.  It  is  '  *  not  to  be  ministered  unto 
but  to  minister.'*  For  the  love  which 
cements  the  family  together  grows  strong,  not 
by  getting  much,  but  by  giving  and  doing,  in 
the  spirit  of  Him  who  said,  * '  It  is  more  blessed 
[that  is,  happy]  to  give  than  to  receive." 

We  have  also,  in  the  plain  facts  of  the 

home  life,    ready  answer  to  the  question, 

What  will  become  of  the  individ- 

A^significant    ^^1  if  he  ''  cstcems  others  better 

than  himself?  Who  will  take 
care  of  him  if  he  does  not  look  out  for  him- 
self? The  beautiful  fact  is,  as  a  rule,  that 
whoever  does  most  for  the  common  good  of 
the  home,  whoever  gives  it  most  hearty  serv- 
ice, is  the  one  who  gets  most  out  of 
its  life  and  enjoys  it  best.  Whoever  gives 
most  love  and  demands  the  least  in  return 
is  apt  to  be  precisely  the  one  whom  every 
one  loves  most.  In  these  high  things  the 
rule  of  getting  seems  to  be,  not  to  try  to  get 
at  all.  We  shall  have  occasion  later  to  trace 
this  more  fully. 


I 


• 


!( 


Is  the  Golden  Rule  Practicable?       19 

I  have  to  protest  here  in  passing  against  a 
common  proverb  that  *'love  is  blind.''     It 
does  often  seem  blind.      There 
are  sweet  and  loving  women  who   hSefulence. 
make    themselves  slaves  to    the 
selfishness  of  their  husbands.     There  are  sis- 
ters who  give  up  their  chance  of  education 
and  happiness,  and  contrive  to  sacrifice  other 
rights  besides,    in  an  unthinking  sense  of 
duty  to  their  home.     The  fact  is,  that  true 
love  is  intelligent.     It  sees  the  ends  toward 
which  it  moves.     Toward  the  real  and  larger 
welfare  of  its  object  it  gives  itself  lavishly, 
but  it  has  no  right  to  give  itself  merely  to 
minister  to  the  ease,  the  selfishness,  the  com- 
placency of  another.    This  would  be  to  harm 
the    other.      If  true    love  is  to    keep  the 
Golden  Rule,  it  is  not  love  to  help  our  best 
friends  to  break  the  Golden  Rule,  and  so  to 
lose  the  prizes  of  life. 

I  lay  stress  upon  the  working  of  the  Golden 
Rule  in  the  home,  because  here  is  a  central 
point  of  departure  from  which  to 
reach  all   the  regions  of  human  ^^fd  lays  of 
life.     Thus  the  brothers  of  a  fam-  S^oYh'er^sf  ^ 
ily  grow  up  and  go  into  business. 
Having  treated  one  another  as  brothers,  and 
having  found  the  Golden  Rule  to  work  2& 


I 


20        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business, 

long  as  they  lived  under  the  same  roof,  will 
they  now  change  all  this  and  take  up  the 
weapons  of  suspicion  and  unfriendliness 
toward  one  another  ?  On  the  contrary,  the 
whole  world  pronounces  against  brothers  who 
are  mean  enough  to  hurt  each  other  in  busi- 
ness. The  man  who  gets  an  advantage  in 
trade  to  the  loss  of  his  own  brother  had  bet- 
ter not  let  it  be  known  *  *  on  the  street. '  * 

The  Golden  Rule  also  marches  out  of  the 
home  and  covers  the  realms  of  our  friend- 
ships. What  else  does  friendship 
of  friendship,  "^^an  than  that  friends  treat  each 
other  after  the  fashion  of  brothers 
and  sisters?  The  Golden  Rule  cements 
friendship  as  it  binds  the  home.  *^  Perhaps 
you  think  that  you  can  be  a  friend  in  social 
relations,  but  you  need  not  be  a  friend  in  a 
bargain.  The  ordinary  judgment  of  the 
world  then  proclaims  you  to  be  no  true  friend 
at  all.  Who  will  value  your  friendship  for  a 
moment,  after  you  have  tried  to  get  the  bet- 
ter of  him  in  a  trade  ?  You  are  absolutely 
bound  to  observe  the  Golden  Rule,  at  least 
toward  your  friends,  if  you  want  to  keep 
them.  You  can  no  more  afford  to  push  and 
crowd  them  in  business  than  you  can 
venture  to   push  and   crowd   them    to  the 


i' 


'0 


Is  the  Golden  Rule  Practicable  f      21 

ivall  at  a  social  party.     See  then  at  once  how 
the  Golden  Rule  extends  its  sway. 

The  bond  of  friendship  also  takes  up  a 
great  many  almost  superficial  and  conven- 
tional relations  among  men  and 

rr^i  T  Among 

women.     There  are  laro^e  num-  various 

.         .    \,  brotherhoods. 

bers  of  people  who  belong  to 
lodges,  orders,  and  brotherhoods.  If  a  man 
is  going  to  cheat  or  play  a  sharp  trick  in 
business,  I  suspect  that  he  had  better  not 
touch  the  members  of  his  own  lodge  of 
Masons  or  Odd  Fellows.  The  Golden  Rule 
will  confront  him  some  day  in  his  lodge  room 
with  its  eternal  rebuke  of  hypocrisy.  I  am 
told  that  even  on  the  Stock  Exchange  an 
irresistible  code  of  honor  compels  the  man 
who  might  be  cruel  and  crafty  in  his  dealings 
with  ''the  lambs''  outside,  to  be  true  and 
even  generous  toward  his  * '  brothers ' '  of  the 
Exchange. 

We  come  now  to  a  singular  anomaly,  which 
has  puzzled  thousands  of  plain  people  and 
made  endless  scandal.     It  is  the   ^^  ^^  .  . 

The  Christian 

comparative  failure  of  the  Golden  Churcii ;  an 

•^  1     •     •  exception. 

Rule    among    fellow    Christians. 
You  will  hear  men  of  large  experience  fre- 
quently say  that  they  have  found  thorough- 
going friendship  elsewhere,  perhaps  among 


22         The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

the  members  of  their  lodge,  or  in  individu- 
als who  made  no  profession  to  belong  to  any 
church,  while  they  have  repeatedly  suffered 
unfriendly    treatment    from    their    brother 
church  members.     The  idea  of  Jesus  about 
these  things  is  as  plain  as  day.     You  will 
know  his  friends,   so  he  invariably  teaches, 
by  the  fact  that  they  love  one  another — that 
is,   keep  the   Golden   Rule.     So  far  as  he 
meant  to  establish  a  church,  it  was  evidently  to 
be  the  closest  and  the  least  conventional  kind 
of    brotherhood.      It    is    hard    enough    to 
imagine  that  Jesus  would  ever  have  accepted 
as  one  of  his  friends— that  is,  as  a  Christian 
— z.  person  who  broke  the    Golden    Rule 
toward  outsiders,    toward  heathen,    toward 
heretical  Samaritans,  much  less  who  made 
his  living  by  breaking  it.     But  it  is  quite  im- 
possible to  think  of  Jesus  as  admitting  those 
to  be  Christians  at  all  who  break  the  Golden 
Rule  toward  their  fellow  Christians.   '  *  What !' ' 
we  hear  him  say,  ' '  do  you  call  yourselves  by 
my  name  and  yet  dare  to  injure  or  cheat  my 
friends,  your  own  brothers  and  sisters  ?    You 
have  missed  then  the  one  idea  for  which  I 
gave  my  life.*' 

-^The  anomaly  of  which  I  speak,  however, 
is  one  of  the  very  exceptions  which  at  last 


i 


Is  the  Golden  Rule  Practicable?      23 

*' proves  the  rule.*'     In  so  far  as  a  church 
at  any  time  contains  genuine  per- 
sons, whenever  there  has  been  a  l^^^^"^ 
true    revival   of  the  good  life — 
among  the  Moravians,  among  the  Quakers — 
when   Wesley,    Channing,    General    Booth, 
Phillips  Brooks  have  preached  the  veritable 
gospel— you  mark  the  tide  of  the  new  life 
absolutely  by   the  working  of  the  Golden 
Rule.     You  will  find  at  every  such  point  an 
actual   enlargement   of    the   real   church   of 
Christ.     You   find  at  least  individuals  who, 
having  caught  Jesus'  idea  of  a  life  of  friendly 
service,  are  honestly  conducting  their  busi- 
ness  on   the  beautiful  lines   of  the  Golden 
Rule.     I  maintain  that  this  number  is  already 
considerable.     The   disappointment  that  we 
feel  about  the  church  is,  that  the  spirit  of  the 
Golden  Rule,  which  splendidly  characterizes 
individual  members,  has  not  yet  spread  so  as 
definitely  to  control  the  whole  body. 

You  may  liken  the  region  of  business,  and 
in  many  respects  you  must  liken  the  church 
also,  to  a  land  of  hills  and  plains, 

,it^/^»^  ,,,t,:r>U   4.U^  •      ^      •   •  The  undoubted 

upon  Which  the   sun,  just   rising,    empire  of  the 

has  already  begun  to  shine  into     °  ^"  ^"^^' 
the  windows  of  the  houses  on  the  hilltops. 
Wherever  brothers  and  kindly  kinsfolk  dwell, 


24        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

wherever  friends  live,  wherever  friendship, 
even  in  its  semblance,  is  organized  into  so- 
cieties and  fellowships,  wherever  also  the 
church  idea  is  vital,  the  Golden  Rule  already 
is  seen  in  its  beneficent  operation.  It  begins 
to  look  now  as  though  those  ought  to  be 
obliged  to  prove  their  case  who  deny  that  the 
Golden  Rule  is  practicable. 


\ 


h 


III. 


THE  GOLDEN  RULE  AND  NATURE. 

It  is  often  hastily  assumed  that  nature  is 
wholly  against  the  Golden  Rule.     Selfishness, 
it  is  said,  drives  the  wheels  of  the 
world.      This  is  to  leave  out  of  ^^l^^<^l^^ 
sight  an  immense  and  impressive 
series  of  facts.     It  would  be  truer  to  say  that 
the  world  is  a  vast  parable  of  some  deep  law 
of  cooperation.     You  see  it  at  work  in  every 
crystal,  you  see  it  in  the  frost-work  of  your 
window-pane.     You  see  it  binding  birds  to- 
gether in  flocks,  cattle  in  herds,  bees  in  hives. 
You  see  it  in  its  culmination  in  man.     There 
is  that,  even  in  his  animal  nature,  which  binds 
him  in  social  relations  with  his  fellows.     His 
better  nature  finds  abiding  contentment  no- 
where more  than  in  friendly  service.     Jesus 
was  the  forerunner  of  a  long  line  of  those  who 
have  not  only  lived  the  good  life,  but  have 
lived  it  with  serene  gladness. 

I  wish  to  show  how,  in  various  important 
respects  in  the  realm  of  business,  the  deeper 

25 


26        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

nature  marches  to  support  the  Golden  Rule. 
We  will  boldly  begin  with  the  profession  ol 
«r,.  . , .  J   r^^  minister,  because  I   believe, 

What  kind  of  .  ' 

ministers  the   SO  far  from  its  beingf  exceptional, 

world  wants.     .      ,  •     *       /. 

It  is  typical  of  the  trades  and 
professions.  He  alone  is  truly  a  minister  who 
stands  to  give  the  utmost  possible  service  to 
his  fellows.  I  maintain  that  the  world  is  ex- 
tremely appreciative  of  this  kind  of  ministry. 
Why  was  the  land  full  of  praise  for  Dr.  Park- 
hurst,  or  a  little  before  for  Dr.  Brooks,  ex- 
cept that  men  desire  nothing  so  much  as  to 
see  the  working  of  the  spirit  of  the  Golden 
Rule? 

We  pass,  with  the  sense  of  scarcely  a  shade 
of  difference  of  purpose,  into  the  great  de- 
partment of  education.  You  are 
The  teachers,  about  to  choosc  a  tcachcr  for  your 
kindergarten,  a  master  for  your 
high  school,  a  president  for  your  college. 
What  kind  of  a  candidate  will  you  choose  ? 
Surely  not  any  selfish  or  mercenary  person. 
Your  teachers,  the  educators  of  your  chil- 
dren, must  steer  their  lives  by  the  Golden 
Rule.  Dr.  Arnold,  of  Rugby,  or  President 
Mark  Hopkins,  is  the  type  of  the  man  whom 
the  world  puts  in  the  front  rank  among 
teachers. 


f 


1 


>< 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Nature.        27 

What  shall  we  say  now  of  the  physicians 
whom  we  delight  to  honor  ?  We  want  science, 
skill,  experience  in  our  physician, 

but  we  want  something  more.  We  physi^fan. 
are  afraid  of  a  selfish  and  sordid 
man  in  the  sick  room.  We  want  humanity, 
friendliness,  a  generous  heart.  In  the  best 
sense  of  the  word,  we  want  our  physician  to 
be  a  religious  man,  that  is,  a  man  of  faith, 
hope,  love.  No  one  doubts  that  here  is  the 
ideal  of  the  good  physician. 

Let  us  turn  to  the  authors,  the  artists, 
the  musicians,  and  see  if  the  Golden  Rule 
will  hurt  or  help  their  art.  I  hold 
that  art  is  truth,  and  the  Golden  J^a^sg^^ 
Rule  marches  with  truth.  Art  is 
beauty  and  the  Golden  Rule  works  toward  the 
highest  beauty.  The  great  writers  and  poets 
have  been  eloquent  in  proportion  as  their 
hearts  have  been  warm  with  humanity.  Dante, 
Shakspeare,  Milton,  Browning,  our  own 
Lowell,  Longfellow,  and  Whittier,  have  sung 
the  praise  of  devotion  and  love.  The  great 
artists,  Michael  Angelo  or  Millet,  have  not 
dared,  for  cheap  praise  or  for  hire,  to  wrong 
the  truth  of  their  art.  The  great  composers 
like  Bach  and  Beethoven  have  put  the  human 
soul  into  their  music.     I  do  not  claim  that  all 


\ 


2S         The  Golden  Rule  i7i  Business. 

these  men  have  been  unselfish,  but  I  claim 
that  their  best  strength  comes  from  their  truth, 
their  sincerity,  their  steadfastness,  their  sym- 
pathies. The  masters  never  needed  to  be 
selfish,  to  push,  or  to  scramble  in  order  to 
win  their  renown. 

Let  us  descend  nearer  to  the  great  average 
life  of  mankind  and  see  whether  the  Golden 

The  kind  of  ^^^^  ^^^^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^P  a  mechanic, 
weaiTwant.  ^  machinist,  an  engineer.  We 
are  told  that  the  large  employers 
cannot  obtain  enough  skilled  and  trustworthy 
men.  Other  things  being  equal,  the  men 
who  work  by  the  standard  of  the  Golden 
Rule  actually  command  the  highest  wages  in 
the  market.  Every  one  wants  to  be  served 
by  such  men. 

The  same  thing  obviously  holds  good  of 
the  multitude  of  farmers.     Here  is  a  farmer 

who  aims  to  do  the  least  possible 
The  farmers,    for  his   land,   for  his   catrie  and 

horses,  for  his  neighbors,  for  his 
customers,  and  he  wishes  to  get  the  most  that 
he  can  for  himself.  Alongside  of  him  is  the 
man  who  gives  honest  and  friendly  measure 
to  every  one,  who  tends  his  land  and  loves 
his  creatures.  Which  farmer,  other  things 
being  equal,   will  succeed?      The    practice 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Nature.        29 

of  the  Golden  Rule  will  work  every  time. 

Come  now  to  the  great  army  of  labor,  and 
see  whether  the  Golden  Rule,  or  selfishness 
stands  in  the  way  of  the  pros- 
perity of  the  workers.     Is  it  ever  the  Golden 
against  the  interests  of  the  work- 
ingman,    that    he    gives  such  faithful    and 
friendly  service  as  he  would  wish  to  have  an- 
other render  him  ?     Does  any  one  imagine, 
if  the  whole  force  of  a  factory  were  to  act 
like  Christians — in  other  words,  were  to  do 
their  work  like  true  and  brotherly  men— that 
they  would  lose  in  wages,  appreciation,  con- 
tentment, happiness,  or  anything  else  ? 

About  the  great  mass  of  women's  work  we 
are  perfectly  sure.     The  larger  part  of  it  is 
done  in  households  where,  as  we 
have  seen,  the  essential  condition  G^^en  R^uie 
of  any  degree  of  comfort  is  in  ^^^en'swork. 
the  good  temper  of  the  inmates 
of  the  home.     For  all  domestic  situations 
there  do  not  begin  to  be  willing,  cheerful, 
and  friendly  women  to  meet  the  demand.    In 
other  words,    there  is  not  a    worker  any- 
where with  whom  the  adoption  of  the  Golden 
Rule  does  not  signify  a  distinct,  and  often  a 
very  large,  increase  of  value.     The  Golden 
Rule   is  founded  in   nature.      It  opens  the 


/ 


30        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

flood-gates  of  new  power,  insight,  and  life. 

We  will  make  bold  now  to  advance  larger 

claims  for  the  working  of  the  Golden  Rule. 

What  sort  of    ^^  ^^^^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^^  ^^^^  in  that 
gje^^Jj^e  want    most  difficult  department  of  human 

life,  politics.  We  have  here  con- 
spicuous examples.  Why  does  Washington 
stand  at  the  head  of  our  list  of  illustrious 
men  ?  It  is  because  he  used  his  high  place 
for  the  good  of  the  people.  In  the  Christian 
sense  of  the  word,  he  was  a  great  minister. 
Lincoln  and  Garfield  were  great  for  the  same 
reason.  Everywhere  the  country  cries  out 
for  such  men  as  these.  Only  these  have  any 
worthy  memorial.  Small  and  selfish  men  are 
blind  not  to  see  these  things.  What  Jesus 
said  begins  already  to  be  true,  namely,  that 
the  meek — that  is,  those  who  do  not  seek 
their  own  ends,  office,  or  emolument — **  shall 
inherit  the  earth.''  Yes,  shall  hold  the  of- 
fices and  wield  the  power !  For  thus  the 
facts  prophesy. 

It  is  with  these  human  relations  as  it  is 
with  boys  in  their  games.     It  may  be  that 
the  boys  who  cheat  and  break  the 
Umpire?"'^     ^ulcs  of  the  game    seem    for  a 
while  to  succeed.     But  the  um- 
pires are  watching,  and  if  there  were  no  um- 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Nature.        31 

pires,  the  boys  themselves  have  no  real 
respect  except  for  skill  and  fair  play.  So 
the  Eternal  Umpire  presides  over  human 
affairs;  no  evil  thing  can  prosper;  no  honest 
effort  is  unseen  or  lost. 


*  1 

i 

f 


IV. 


THE  GOLDEN  RULE  AND  TRADE. 

Can  we  take  one  farther  step  and  claim 
that  the  Golden  Rule  will  work  in  the  mer- 
cantile world?  There  are  those 
Wepr'e^slnY  who  Say  that  the  ruling  concep- 
trlde?  ^^  tions  of  trade  are  foreign  to  the 
genius  of  Christianity,  or  even  of 
human  brotherhood.  Trade  proceeds  by 
competition.  It  buys  in  the  cheapest  market 
and  sells  in  the  dearest.  It  stands  between 
the  producer  and  consumer,  and  gets  what 
it  can  out  of  each.  As  long  as  trade  is  a 
species  of  struggle,  as  long  as  the  present 
mercantile  and  industrial  system  holds,  mea 
say,  you  cannot  buy  and  sell  by  the  Golden 
Rule.  You  must  first  alter  the  system  of  the 
world.  If  these  things  are  so,  no  true  and 
friendly  man  can  remain  in  mercantile  busi- 
ness. I  cannot  be  bidden  to  do  false  or 
hurtful  acts  to  my  neighbors.  I  cannot  send 
my  sons  to  learn  a  business  in  which  they 
must  cheat  and  take  mean  advantage.  Surely 

32 


J. 


' 


> 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Trade.         33 

there  are .  other  places  of  work  to  be  found 
in  the  great  world,  where  we  may  live  with- 
out tripping  up  and  crowding  to  the  wall  our 
weaker  brothers,  or  scrambling  disgracefully 
to  get  the  highest  seats  at  the  table. 

Let  us  first,  however,  see  if  the  present 
mercantile  system  itself  is  wrong,  or  is  it  pos- 
sible that  the  wrong  is  in  the  men 
who  manage  it  ?    It  is  certain  that  ^^^*  ^^^^^ 
a  large  part  of  all  trade  must  run 
close  to  the  lines  of  the  Golden  Rule.     I 
mean  that  trade,  upon  the  whole,  is  for  the 
one  net  object  of  human  service.     It  is  for 
the  good  of  all  of  us  that  merchants  bring 
flour  from   Dakota  and  rice  from  the  sea- 
islands.     It  is  for  good,   and  not  mischief, 
that  they  fill  their  stores  with  costly  mer- 
chandise.    If  I  deal  with  them,  it  is  because^ 
in  at  least  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  I  am  meas- 
urably satisfied  with  my  bargain. 

Moreover — a  remarkable  fact — in  nearly 
every  branch  of  trade  I  know  certain  dealers 
in  whose  friendly  service  I  have 
solid  confidence.     In  every  city  uke  to^Sde. 
there  are  establishments  upon  the 
good  faith  of  which  one  can  rely.     When- 
ever  a  business  house  has  a  generous  reputa- 
tion people  like  to  go  there  to  trade.     Can  it 


f 


34 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


be  unprofitable  to  the  merchant  that  he  makes 
his  neighbors  trust,  respect,  and  love  him?. 
The  Golden  Rule  tends  to  this  precise  end. 
On  the  contrary,  he  who  violates  the  Golden 
Rule  in  his  dealings  rouses  our  suspicions, 
and  either  repels  men's  trade  or  sets  them  at 
work  '  *  to  be  even ' '  with  him. 

My  point  here  is  that  the  great  bulk  of 

mercantile  transactions  has  to  be  reasonably 

near  the  lines   of  justice  and  of 

The  lines  of     humau  scrvice.     The  margin  of 

justice  and  hu-    ,.  ,  ,  - 

man  service,  dishonesty  IS  somcwhat  narrow 
and  dangerous.  The  Golden  Rule, 
aiming  at  the  utmost  human  welfare,  is  so 
.  deep  in  nature  that  it  commands  a  sort  of 
conformity,  long  before  men  have  fairly  caught 
its  spirit.  It  is  possible,  if  all  the  men  in 
New  York  to-morrow  adopted  the  Golden 
Rule  that  the  figures  of  prices,  values,  and 
profits  might  not  have  to  undergo  very  great 
change.  It  is  likely  that  the  services  of  few 
of  us  are  worth  to  the  world  much  more  than 
we  get.  The  adoption  of  the  Golden  Rule 
would  lessen  great  sources  of  waste  ;  it  would 
increase  the  grand  product  out  of  which  we 
all  live  ;  it  would  correct  certain  sad  abuses 
and  injustices  ;  but  its  chief  gain  would  be  on 
the  side  of  our  humanity,   in  the  quickened 


\ 


\ 


f\ 


The  Golden  Rule  ayid  Trade, 


35 


sense  of  our  brotherhood,  lifting  the  ordinary 
relations  of  trade  to  the  same  level  with  the 
ministrations  of  the  teacher,  the  physician, 
the  poet  and  artist,  the  friend  and  the  patriot. 
What  shall  we  say  of  this  terrible  old  brute 
doctrine  of  competition  ?  Is  trade  possible 
without  it  ?  I  propose  to  translate 
this  doctrine  into  higher  terms,  ^mpetition. 
The  competition  which  aggrieves 
us  is  that  which  seeks  its  gain  at  another's 
loss.  You  have  this  at  its  extreme  in  all 
kinds  of  gambling,  whether  in  the  lottery  or 
in  the  stock  and  produce  exchanges.  You 
have  it  in  the  extortions  of  the  ordinary  pawn- 
shop. In  this  kind  of  competition  the  weight 
of  the  effort  is  to  get.  But  suppose  the 
emphasis  is  changed,  and  the  effort  is  to  give, 
to  accomplish  a  benefit,  to  do  a  service  ?  Sup- 
pose that  the  aim  in  the  school-room  is  not  a 
prize,  which  only  one  can  have,  but  the  aim 
is  the  mark  of  excellence,  which  all  may  win 
if  they  please  ?  What  if  the  farmer  tries  for 
the  largest  product  and  highest  quality  of 
fruit,  the  manufacturer  aims  at  turning  out 
goods  of  standard  perfection,  the  carpenter 
takes  honest  delight  in  the  thoroughness  of 
his  workmanship,  the  merchant  exerts  him- 
self to  treat  his  customers  handsomely  ?  Here 


36 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


U'H 


I 


IS  no  longer  a  reckless  and  brutal  struggle  to 
crowd  others  to  the  wall.  It  is  a  friendly 
emulation,  worthy  of  men.  Its  success  is  not 
at  others'  loss,  but  for  the  enrichment  of  all. 
This  is  precisely  the  application  of  the  Golden 
Rule  to  trade  as  we  have  seen  it  applied  in 
noble  homes.  We  are  surely  very  unfortu- 
nate in  our  business  acquaintances  if  we  have 
not  actually  seen  those  who  thus  successfully 
translated  the  competitive  struggle  into  the 
highest  human  terms  of  honest  and  friendly 
service. 

I  am  reminded  of  that  stern  law  of  trade,  to 
**  buy  in  the  cheapest  market  and  to  sell  in  the 
dearest.**  Can  this  be  translated 
"  suppi5^  and  into  the  terms  of  the  Golden  Rule  ? 
ulnsiafed.  Let  US  scc  if  there  is  anything  in- 
trinsically selfish  in  this  *  *  law  of 
supply  and  demand.'*  Men  are  now  mostly 
selfish  in  using  this  law ;  let  us  show  them 
how  to  use  it  with  intelligent  humanity. 
Where  is  the  cheapest  market  for  corn  or. 
cotton  ?  It  is  where  the  supply  is  largest,  and 
where  presumably  the  farmer  wants  to  ex- 
change his  product  for  money.  And  where 
is  the  dearest  market?  It  is  in  the  city  or  at 
the  factory,  where  he  will  confer  a  favor  who 
provides  a  supply.     The  Golden  Rule  surely 


,\ 


/ 


'» 


IV 


f 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Trade. 


37 


does  not  forbid  a  good  man  from  bringing 
the  supply  to  meet  the  need.  What  the 
Golden  Rule  requires  is  the  attitude  of  a 
friend,  who  gives  cheerfully  as  much  as  he 
can  afford.  The  bargain  that  brings  the 
needs  of  the  buyer  and  seller  together  must 
aim  to  benefit  both  parties.  The  Golden 
Rule  might  not  alter  the  terms  of  the  bargain, 
but  it  would  make  men' s  eyes  thoughtful  to 
see  the  other's  side  in  the  bargain.  Selfish 
men  in  a  bargain  are  each  suspiciously  seek- 
ing to  get  advantage  away  from  the  other ; 
friendly  men  seek  to  benefit  each  other.  In 
each  case  the  somewhat  narrow  margin,  within 
which  they  adjust  their  prices,  is  the  same. 
Thus  when  a  farmer  brings  potatoes  into  the 
city,  the  buyer  can  hardly  afford  to  give  sixty 
cents  a  bushel.  The  farmer  can  hardly  afford 
to  sell  for  fifty  cents.  They  agree  upon  fifty- 
five  cents.  If  they  are  selfish  men,  they  part, 
each  grudging  the  other  his  advantage.  If 
they  are  friendly  men,  they  are  happy  in  hav- 
ing shared  a  mutual  benefit. 

Yes,  some  one  replies,  but  the  present  in- 
dustrial system  puts  human  labor  ^^^  ^^^^^^ 
under  this  stern  law.      Will  the  Rule  in  "  the 

labor  market." 

Golden  Rule  let  us  buy  labor  m 

the  cheapest  market  ?    Where  is  the  cheapest 


ii: 


/■ 


III 


38        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

labor  market  ?  It  is  where  unfortunate  men 
are  unemployed.  There  can  be  no  wrong 
in  employing  them.  The  wrong  is  in  being 
blind  to  their  humanity.  The  wrong  is  in 
taking  advantage  of  their  necessity. 

The  Golden  Rule  is  often  expected  to  work 

a  physical  miracle,  and  make  something  out 

of  nothing.     If  a  thousand  men, 

Things  which  1.1  1 

we  must  not  workmg  grudgingly,  only  pro- 
duce a  thousand  dollars'  worth  in 
a  day,  the  Golden  Rule  cannot  find  means 
for  the  most  generous  employer  to  pay  them 
each  a  dollar  and  a  half  In  other  words, 
the  Golden  Rule  cannot  give  a  man  more 
than  the  value  of  what  he  really  produces. 

It  must  be  admitted,  nevertheless,  that 
great  wrongs  are  wrought  under  the  present 
industrial  system.  It  is  easy  to 
pr'llinf  ind^us-  P^int  them  in  lurid  colors.  There 
Indhowlhlir  are  glaring  inequalities.  There  are 
come?"^^  those  whose  immense  luxuries, 
drawn  from  unjust  monopolies, 
are  borne  at  the  common  expense.  I  have 
tried  to  suggest  that,  deep  down  beneath  the 
present  system,  below  men's  ordinary  con- 
sciousness, the  principle  of  the  Golden  Rule 
founded  in  nature  is  slowly  at  work,  urging 
men  into  closer  cooperation  and  bringing 


ii 


} 


h 


/ 


t 


I 


The  Golden  Rule  and  Trade.        39 

hurtful  methods  to  naught.  The  cure  for 
the  evils  that  distress  us  is  certainly  not  in 
selfishness,  standing  aloof  in  envy  and  anger, 
or  smashing  the  costly  and  delicate  machinery 
of  the  world' s  industry.  The  cure  is  not  in 
shirking  or  scamping  one's  work  and  cutting 
at  the  great  aggregate  product.  The  cure  is 
not  in  snatching  from  the  gains  of  others,  or 
trying  to  live  out  of  the  public  purse.  The 
only  cure  is  in  owning  the  Golden  Rule,  even 
while  others  disown  it,  and  in  helping  to 
make  it  work.  As  sure  as  this  is  God's 
world,  it  will  and  must  work.  As  sure  as 
we  are  God's  children,  we  shall  have  no 
peace  or  satisfaction  till  we  make  it  work. 
And  if,  as  some  think,  a  better  system  of 
human  society  is  coming,  it  can  only  come 
as  the  expression  of  the  will  of  a  people 
whose  hearts  have  been  possessed  with  the 
spirit  of  the  Golden  Rule.  Convert  men 
to-day  to  live  by  this  rule  and  labor  troubles 
will  cease,  strikes  will  no  more  be  heard  of, 
exacting  monopolies  will  disappear,  the  inter- 
est rate  of  money,  rents,  and  taxes  will  de- 
cline, unused  land  will  be  opened  to  use,  the 
aggregate  product  of  all  good  things  will  be 
enlarged,  and  every  one  will  have  an  ampler 
share,  with  leisure  enough  to  enjoy  it. 


V. 


Hi 


A  terrible 
•*if." 


THE  GOLDEN   RULE  AS   A  VENTURE. 

Perhaps  no  one  will  be  so  skeptical  as  to 
deny  the  conclusion  of  the  last  chapter.  Yes, 

men  say,   the   Golden   Rule  will 

work  if  every  one  will  keep  it. 

It  will  work  under  favorable  con- 
ditions, as,  for  instance,  in  dealings  with  our 
friends.  The  trouble  is  that  the  world  is  full 
of  people  who  do  not  pretend  to  keep  the 
Golden  Rule,  and  against  whose  greed  and 
selfishness  we  have  to  stand  on  guard. 

I  am  overwhelmed  at  once  with  a  chorus 
of  objections  and  excuses.     The  merchant 

tells  me  frankly  that  he  must 
i^s^o"estythe  sometimes     break     the     Golden 

Rule,  like  other  merchants,  or  he 
will  starve.  The  manufacturer  says  that  he 
cannot  keep  the  Golden  Rule  while  other 
manufacturers  break  it.  If  his  workmen  try 
to  beat  him  out  of  his  profits,  he  must  in 
self-defense  beat  down  their  wages.  There 
are  men  who  cheat  in  their  work.     The  mas- 

40 


lii 


\ 


The  Golden  Rule  as  a  Venture.       41 

ter  must  fight  them,  if  not  with  cheating,  at 
least  with  fines,  suspicions,  espionage.  The 
brutal  spirit  voices  itself  in  the  professions. 
We  must  get  a  living,  men  say,  by  doing  as 
others  do.  We  must  mix  a  grain  of  humbug 
in  our  medicines,  we  must  try  to  make  the 
worse  appear  the  better  reason.  You  must 
keep  on  the  side  of  your  bread  and  butter, 
says  the  subtle  tempter  to  the  minister.  You 
owe  your  first  duty  in  this  rude  world  to 
your  family.  Even  kindly  women  are  caught 
by  the  popular  voice.  It  is  no  use,  they  say, 
to  be  generous  to  the  girls  in  the  kitchen. 
They  do  not  thank  us  for  our  kindnesses. 
And  the  cooks  and  the  maids  answer  back. 
We  never  get  any  thanks  for  keeping  the 
Golden  Rule.  What  a  mercenary  world  it 
still  is,  when  kind  women  grudge  their  kind- 
ness, unless  they  are  paid  in  thanks ! 

In  the  face  of  these  eager  complaints  I  am 
bound  to  make  certain  concessions.     I  do 
not  pretend  that  thorough  work- 
manship,   though    cheapest    and  J?venture?* 
best  in  the  end,  is  not  somewhat 
costly  at  the  start.     Perhaps  only  the  skilled 
engineer  sees  at  first  why  so  much  work  must 
be  sunk  out  of  sight  for  the  foundations  of 
the  bridge.     The    engineer    cannot  always 


[i 


42         The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

foresee  in  the  new  work  exactly  how  costly 
it  may  prove,  or  what  unexpected  difficulties 
may  need  to  be  overcome.  This  fact  of  our 
human  short-sightedness  about  great  or  new 
undertakings  makes  what  we  call  the  element 
of  venture.  It  is  a  very  interesting  element, 
which  gives  zest  to  enterprise  and  color  to 
hope.  I  must  concede  that  the  way  of  the 
Golden  Rule,  especially  for  one  who  begins 
to  walk  in  it,  holds  this  brave  element  of  a 
venture.  There  are  difficulties,  there  will  be 
expense,  there  will  be  discouragements.  I 
liken  Jesus,  with  his  clear  sight  of  the  laws 
of  the  good  life,  to  the  skilled  engineer. 

I  am  inclined  to  concede  at  once  that,  if 

success  is  in  making  money,  the  man  who 

keeps  the  Golden  Rule  will  rarely 

A  concession  ,  -  1  

about  money,  make  or  keep  so  much  money  as 
making.  ^^^  ^^^^  cautious  or  less  gener- 
ous man,  who  only  does  '*as  the  others  do." 
We  will  grant  that  few  millionaire  fortunes 
can  be  made  by  the  men  of  the  Golden  Rule. 
We  will  concede,  also,  that  there  may  be 
occasions  where  the  Golden  Rule 
would  drive  a  man  out  of  his 
present  business,  as  Zacchaeus 
was  probably  driven  out  of  his  publican's 
office.     What  can  a  true  man  do,  if  he  dis- 


About  bad 
kinds  of 
business. 


The  Golden  Rule  as  a    Venture,      43 


' 


W 


covers  that  his  business  is  of  no  real  use  to 
human  society  ?  And  there  are  such  kinds 
of  business !  What  can  a  true  man  do,  if 
the  customs  of  his  trade  command  him  to 
hush  his  conscience,  or  to  harden  his  heart, 
as  the  slave  trade  did,  as  the  liquor  trade 
largely  does  now?  What  can  he  do,  if  the 
kind  of  competition  in  which  he  is  involved 
urges  him  to  use  the  methods  of  the  sweat- 
shop against  his  working  people?  What  can 
he  do,  if  he  wakes  up  to  find  himself  one  of 
the  tools  of  a  monstrous  monopoly  ? 

The  Golden  Rule  will  also  sometimes  dic- 
tate a  reduction   of  salary  or  income.     It 
se^ms   obvious,   if  the  wages  of 
employees  in  a  mill  must  be  cut  ^^des/^^ 
down,    that    the    higher    officers 
ought  cheerfully  to  accept  a  like  reduction  of 
their  salaries  and  the  stockholders  to  receive 
a  smaller  dividend.      In  hard  times  the  min- 
ister must    willingly  suffer  losses  with  his 
people. 

It   is    evident    that    thorough    obedience 
to  the   Golden    Rule  will   not    always    be 
popular.      The  rule  will  require 
us  to  do  more  than  others  do,  to   unpopu^arfty. 
move  in  advance  of  the    great 
body  of  men  in  our  trade  or  profession.  The 


44         The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


weapons  of  strife  and  suspicion  are  largely  in 
vogue.  The  manufacturer  who  ventures  to 
trust  the  friendly  methods  of  the  Golden 
Rule  may  be  called  a  **  crank/'  The  work- 
man who  tries  to  treat  his  employer  as  he 
would  wish  to  be  treated  will  risk  unpopu- 
larity among  his  mates.  We  may  have  con- 
fidence that  the  Golden  Rule  will  work 
eventual  prosperity,  as  the  men  who  began 
the  strife  against  slavery  trusted  in  the  tri- 
umph of  liberty.  But  the  world  is  still  shy 
of  changing  its  barbarous  habits,  and  we  who 
believe  in  the  Golden  Rule  must  make  up 
our  minds,  like  all  pioneers,  to  be  for  a  while 
in  the  minority.  The  Great  Engineer*  s  plan 
will  doubtless  be  cheapest  and  best,  but  it  is 
only  the  few  at  first  who  willingly  face  his 
careful  figures.  Did  he  ever  promise  that 
those  who  follow  him  should  suffer  no  disap- 
pointment? 

We  come  to  the  practical  question  which 
the  timid  will  always  be  asking:  Shall  we  be 
,  .  sure  of  a  livinsf  if  we  take  this 
it  is  safe  to  '  magnificent  venture?  Will  not 
our  families  suffer  ?  Can  we  edu- 
cate our  children  on  the  income  that  the 
Golden  Rule  will  leave  us?  It  is  evident 
that  from  the  time  of  Jesus  down  to  our  own 


The  Golden  Rule  as  a   Venture.      45 

Civil  War,  the  way  of  the  Golden  Rule  has 
often  led  to  poverty,  imprisonment,  and 
death.  Nevertheless,  the  sufferings  of  the 
martyrs  have  already  purchased  such  an  ad- 
vance in  humanity  that  no  one  who  reads 
these  words  is  likely  really  to  starve  for  his 
devotion  to  duty  !  Neither  do  I  believe  that 
the  children  of  those  who  prefer  to  remain 
poor  rather  than  to  do  unrighteous  things, 
will  suffer  in  all  that  makes  true  education, 
in  comparison  with  the  children  of  him  who 
has  made  his  money  by  craft,  the  wrecking 
of  railroads,  the  bribing  of  legislators.  As  I 
shall  presently  show,  education  is  wrong 
that  makes  children  think  that  the  values  of 
life  are  in  eating  and  drinking,  or  lets  them 
forget  the  eternal  laws  that  bind  society. 

I  might  go  farther  and  urge  again,  what  I 
have  shown  in  a  previous  chapter,  that  la 
many  practical  directions  *  *  godli- 
ness ' '  —  that  is,  righteousness,  tage  of  doing: 
truth,  friendliness — has  *' promise 
of  the  life  that  now  is. ' '  All  things  go  to 
show  that  human  progress  moves  in  this 
direction. 

I  do  not  care,  however,  to  prove  in  ad- 
vance that  the  Golden  Rule  will  always  work 
to  one' s  immediate  material  advantage.    The 


46 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


Faith  and 
certainty. 


great  new  investments  of  each  age  emerge 
out  of  a  cloud  of  some  uncer- 
tainty.    AH  the  men  and  women 
who  have  ever  done  memorable 
things,  or  lived  the  noble  lives  whose  mem- 
ories we  are  proud  to  inherit,   have  taken 
ventures    for    truth,   justice,   liberty,    love, 
humanity.      Our  religion  itself  is  such    a 
glorious  venture.     You  can  rnake  no  demon- 
stration of  its  truth  in  advance  that  will  sat- 
isfy a  coward  or  an  egotist.     It  rests,  indeed, 
on  great  and  ever-increasingly  obvious  facts 
of  the  moral  universe.     To  the  trained  en- 
gineer's eye  its  conclusions  are  irresistible. 
But  to  each  individual  the  entrance  upon  it 
remains  an  act  of  faith.     To  do  merely  what 
is  safe,  what  pays,  what  gives  immediate  sat- 
isfaction, requires  no  faith  nor  courage,  nor 
even  intelligence.     To  do  the  new  and  higher 
thing,  the  lines  of  which  run  into  the  infinite 
distance,  is  ever  the  call  of  religion.     Faith 
predicts  that  it  will  be  well,  but  the  man  has 
to  wait  to  see.     This  is  the  condition  of  his 
finiteness.    It  is  only  at  his  highest  moments, 
bought  by  obedience  to  the  heavenly  visions, 
that  he  catches  glimpses  of  the  eternal  cer- 
titudes. 


VI. 


IVHAT  MAKES  SUCCESS. 


Getting  and 


I  HASTEN  to  clear  up  a  certain  doubtful 
ground.  The  doubt  is  as  to  what  makes  human 
success.  It  is  commonly  assumed 
that  success  is  measured  by  what  givmg. 
one  gets.  It  is  in  amassing  means, 
money,  goods.  It  is  in  luxurious  living  ;  it 
is  in  winning  position  and  office  ;  it  is  in  be- 
ing indulged,  served,  praised.  It  is  no  won- 
der that  children  think  so.  We  have  seen 
that  it  is  not  so  in  the  home.  The  grown 
man  soon  finds  that  all  kinds  of  success  in 
getting  fail  to  bring  satisfaction.  The  larger 
the  nature  or  size  of  the  personality  the 
more  signal  the  man's  failure.  It  is  here  that 
Jesus'  radical  teaching  proves  to  be  truth, 
not  for  another  world,  but  for  this  world. 
Jesus  never  says  that  getting  is  of  no  use,  but 
he  lays  the  emphasis  on  the  other  and  neg- 
lected side  of  life.  The  law  of  the  individual 
life,  says  he,  is  to  give  rather  than  to  get. 
The  business  of  the  vein  or  the  artery  is  to 

47 


48         The  Golden  Rule  m  Business. 

pour  the  blood  through,  to  distribute  nour- 
ishment for  the  body.  Thus  the  artery  gets 
its  own  growth  ;  the  more  it  gives  the  more 
it  shall  have.  In  short,  the  law  of  its  getting 
is  to  give.  So  with  each  individual  man. 
Does  he  wish  to  be  large,  rich,  full  ?  Let  him 
not  then  seek  for  himself  to  be  ministered 
unto,  but  let  him  become  the  largest  possible 
minister  to  the  life  of  mankind.  The  world 
does  not  so  much  exist  for  him  as  he  exists 
for  the  world.  Let  him  do  his  best  for  the 
world,  and  let  him  not  doubt  that  the  Lord 
of  the  world  will  thus  do  the  best  for  him. 

It  is  interesting  to  observe  that  the  bodily 
health  responds  at  once  to  this  deeper  moral 

condition.      There  is  nothing  so 
The  law  of      rasping  to  the  health  as  all  kinds 

of  selfish  anxiety.  Jealousy,  envy, 
suspicion,  as  well  as  self-indulgence,  sap  the 
springs  of  life  and  set  ajar  the  nervous  bal- 
ance. It  is  not  work  that  hurts,  so  much  as 
the  frustration  of  work  that  has  no  worthy 
aim.  This  waste  of  life,  this  nervous  strain 
is  saved,  when  we  accept  the  law  that  makes 
us  simply  ministers  of  the  great  Good- Will. 
We  are  now  under  orders  of  conscience,  of 
truth,  of  love.  We  hold  all  that  we  possess 
in  trust     We  have  only  to  do  what  the 


What  Makes  Success. 


49 


> 


Good- Will  bids.  Further  care  we  have  none. 
Friction  and  worriment  are  reduced  to  a 
minimum.  Our  lives  have  become  parallel 
with  the  motion  of  the  life  forces  of  the  uni- 
verse. 

Jesus'  own  life  was  the  exemplification  of 
this  principle.  His  life  was  large,  rich,  full. 
Who  saw  more  of  the  beauty  of 
this  world  ?  Who  rejoiced  more  ^cceldei.^"^ 
in  the  love  of  his  friends  }  Who 
had  a  more  joyous  hope  to  buoy  up  his 
heart,  that  all  would  be  well  1  Who  in  his 
time  was  better  educated  than  this  carpen- 
ter's son,  who  saw  the  deeper,  though  quite 
simple,  meanings  of  existence  ?  If  the  Golden 
Rule  worked  his  death  a  little  earlier  than 
Herod's  or  Pilate's,  it  first  gave  him  the 
sweetest  enjoyment  of  life  that  man  had  ever 
possessed. 

The  truth  is,  that  real  life  is  in  the  activity 
of  every  part  and  function  that  makes  the 
whole  man.  It  is  as  though  a 
stream  of  divine  health  were  cours-  manhoc^^^^^ 
ing  through  one ;  the  nerves 
tingle  with  zest ;  the  mind  is  quick ;  the 
heart  is  warm  ;  faith  treads  its  brave  ventures 
with  firm  foot.  The  man  is  at  his  full  height 
when,  like  Jesus,  body  and  mind  give  them- 


50        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


A 


% 


selves  with  free  abandon  to  carry  the  mes- 
sages and  do  the  service  of  love. 

We  are  already  accumulating  a  memorable 

array  of  instances  to  show  that  Jesus'  idea  of 

success  is  simply  the  normal  rule, 

The  appeal  to  ^^  ^j^j^j^   ^^    ^^^    ^^^  ^^^^  ^^^j 

life  must  conform.  Who  that  has 
heard  of  General  Armstrong's  work  for  the 
blacks  at  Hampton,  or  Mr.  Brace's  work  for 
the  neglected  children  of  New  York,  can 
doubt  that  the  most  absolute  consecration  to 
the  spirit  of  the  Golden  Rule  brought  these 
men  the  highest  possible  joy.  Others  might 
have  deemed  their  lives  a  sacrifice  upon  the 
altar  of  a  stern  duty.  They  would  have  re- 
plied that  such  persons  did  not  know  what 
life  was.  We  are  poor  if  we  do  not  number 
among  our  friends  those  who  have  made 
similar  trial  of  the  new  life,  to  which  the 
Golden  Rule  is  the  portal.  If  in  any  real 
sense  this  is  God's  world  and  we  are  his  chil- 
dren, the  Golden  Rule  is  the  only  conceivable 
way  through  which  the  divine  life  can  flow 
into  the  soul.  Break  the  rule  and  you  check 
the  flow  of  the  life.  Surely,  then,  it  is  false 
education  that  teaches  however  many  other 
things,  but  fails  to  teach  the  eternal  rule, 
whereby  life  is  renewed  and  made  to  grow  rich. 


»,L 


V 


i 


1. 


VII. 

THE  GOLDEN  RULE   IN   ORGANIZATION. 

I  HAVE  SO  far  assumed  that  it  was  only 
necessary  to  persuade  individuals  to  trust 
Jesus'  teaching,  and  like  him  to 

The  vsreaktiess 

accept  the  Golden   Rule   as   the  oftheindi- 

,  vidual. 

law  of  their  life.  Neither  can  I 
doubt  that  it  is  with  the  individual  in  every 
case  that  our  rule  must  first  win  its  way.  But 
the  complicated  conditions  of  our  modern 
life  oflFer  many  grave  difficulties.  Not  only 
the  individual  workman,  but  the  employer 
also  is  often  caught  in  the  coil  of  a  vast  in- 
dustrial system,  from  which  he  does  not  know 
how  to  escape.  What  can  he  do  alone, 
though  with  the  attitude  of  the  Golden  Rule, 
in  the  face  of  the  pitiless  competition  of  the 
unscrupulous,  or  of  a  labor  market  crowded 
with  emigrants,  scrambling  for  the  lowest 
American  wages  ? 

Moreover,  the  whole  tendency  of  civiliza- 
tion is  toward  closer  and  vaster  forms  of  com- 
bination. We  have  already  traced  a  law,  that 

5X 


.1 


50        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

selves  with  free  abandon  to  carry  the  mes- 
sages and  do  the  service  of  love. 

We  are  already  accumulating  a  memorable 
array  of  instances  to  show  that  Jesus'  idea  of 

success  is  simply  the  normal  rule, 
The  appeal  to  to  which  aU  men  who  want  real 

life  must  conform.  Who  that  has 
heard  of  General  Armstrong's  work  for  the 
blacks  at  Hampton,  or  Mr.  Brace's  work  for 
the  neglected  children  of  New  York,  can 
doubt  that  the  most  absolute  consecration  to 
the  spirit  of  the  Golden  Rule  brought  these 
men  the  highest  possible  joy.  Others  might 
have  deemed  their  lives  a  sacrifice  upon  the 
altar  of  a  stern  duty.  They  would  have  re- 
plied that  such  persons  did  not  know  what 
life  was.  We  are  poor  if  we  do  not  number 
among  our  friends  those  who  have  made 
similar  trial  of  the  new  life,  to  which  the 
Golden  Rule  is  the  portal.  If  in  any  real 
sense  this  is  God's  world  and  we  are  his  chil- 
dren, the  Golden  Rule  is  the  only  conceivable 
way  through  which  the  divine  life  can  flow 
into  the  soul.  Break  the  rule  and  you  check 
the  flow  of  the  life.  Surely,  then,  it  is  false 
education  that  teaches  however  many  other 
things,  but  fails  to  teach  the  eternal  rule, 
whereby  life  is  renewed  and  made  to  grow  rich. 


.1. 


r 


\ 


i 


VII. 

THE  GOLDEN  RULE  IN  ORGANIZATION. 

I  HAVE  SO  far  assumed  that  it  was  only 
necessary  to  persuade  individuals  to  trust 
Jesus'  teaching,  and  like  him  to 
accept  the  Golden   Rule   as   the  oftheindi- 

,        ,  ,  vidual. 

law  of  their  life.  Neither  can  I 
doubt  that  it  is  with  the  individual  in  every 
case  that  our  rule  must  first  win  its  way.  But 
the  complicated  conditions  of  our  modern 
life  offer  many  grave  difficulties.  Not  only 
the  individual  workman,  but  the  employer 
also  is  often  caught  in  the  coil  of  a  vast  in- 
dustrial system,  from  which  he  does  not  know 
how  to  escape.  What  can  he  do  alone, 
though  with  the  attitude  of  the  Golden  Rule, 
in  the  face  of  the  pitiless  competition  of  the 
unscrupulous,  or  of  a  labor  market  crowded 
with  emigrants,  scrambling  for  the  lowest 
American  wages  ? 

Moreover,  the  whole  tendency  of  civiliza- 
tion is  toward  closer  and  vaster  forms  of  com- 
bination. We  have  already  traced  a  law,  that 

51 


r«         <  t  J 


52 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


the   individual  gets  the   most  and  best  for 
_,         ^   ^    himself,  as  he  learns  to  e:ive  the 

The  trend  of  '  °  . 

modern  civiii-  utmost  to  Others.  Cooperation 
is  the  mode  by  which  the  activity 
of  all  is  brought  to  effectiveness.  The  growth 
in  combination  is  really  a  growth  in  humanity. 
But  the  older  barbarous  ideas  still  largely  sur- 
vive. The  great  combinations  are  organized 
to  fight,  and  not  yet  fairly  to  serve,  or  they 
serve  by  the  working  of  the  deeper  law,  in 
spite  of  the  selfish  purpose  of  the  men  who 
direct  them.  The  employers  combine  in 
self-defense  and  establish  corporations  and 
trusts.  Sometimes  they  seem  to  unite  out  of 
sheer  selfishness.  The  workingmen  of  dif- 
ferent trades  combine  likewise  into  unions, 
and  even  try  to  federate  their  unions  together 
and  to  mass  all  the  labor  of  a  nation  into  an 
industrial  army.  They  propose  to  keep 
even  with  the  capitalist  and  to  wrest  from  him 
a  fairer  share  of  the  joint  product.  They 
propose  to  legislate  against  his  legislation  and 
to  alter  the  laws.  Some  promise  to  go  fur- 
ther and  to  inaugurate  a  new  system  of 
society. 

There  does  not  seem  to  be  much  of  the 
Golden  Rule  in  these  great  combinations. 
There  is  much  evident  bitterness.     It  is  strife 


ill 


\ 


The  Goldeii  Rule  in  Organization.      53 

of  the  selfish  against  the  selfish.  Neverthe- 
less, beneath  the  surface  a  new 
principle  slowly  makes  headway.  ^^SnTwork. 
Selfishness,  like  injustice,  is  a  dis- 
integrating force.  It  has  to  unload  somewhat 
of  its  weight  in  order  to  enter  into  any  com- 
bination. At  least  within  its  own  group  or 
union  it  must  keep  the  form  of  the  Golden 
Rule  or  go  down.  Even  in  the  most  danger- 
ous combination  of  greedy  capital,  there  is 
deference  to  the  growing  public  opinion  of 
the  nation  and  a  fear  of  the  laws  through 
which  this  public  opinion  will  surely  shatter 
any  conspiracy  of  the  few  against  the  good 
of  the  many. 

Especially  in  the  labor  unions  the  Golden 
Rule  binds  the  members  among  themselves 
with    an    ever-deepeninof    hold. 

^  ^  .      What  holds 

Men  and  women  are  seen  sacri-  labor  unions 
ficing  their  immediate  and  per- 
sonal interests,  losing  wages  and  risking 
starvation,  for  what  they  deem  the  good  of 
their  brotherhood.  Whether  they  are  always 
wise  or  not,  the  spirit  is  often  precisely  the 
same  as  that  which  gave  the  early  Christian 
Church  its  headway  in  the  teeth  of  persecu- 
tion. 

There  is,  however,  a  class  of  combinations 


54        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

to-day  such  as  the  world  never  before  saw  which 
are  almost  purely  the  outgrowth  of 
combhiat?ons5  ^^  Golden  Rule.  They  are  the 
various  friendly,  philanthropic, 
educational,  patriotic,  humane,  and  missionary 
organizations.  Individuals  possessed  with 
the  purpose  of  the  Golden  Rule  join  hands 
simply  to  give  of  their  labor  or  their  means 
to  cure  human  evils  and  relieve  needs.  Thus 
the  various  temperance  societies  stand  for  the 
desire  of  a  multitude  of  people  to  forego  per- 
sonal indulgence  for  the  sake  of  the  greater 
good.  The  movements  for  purer  govern^ 
ment,  such  as  the  effort  for  civil  service  re- 
form, represent  the  will  of  individuals  like 
the  distinguished  editor,  George  William 
Curtis,  to  devote  themselves  to  public  service. 
We  have  the  clue  to  understand  how  the 
spirit  of  the  Golden  Rule  is  likely  to  work 

„     ^^       ^  relief  from  the  great  and  threaten- 
How  the  good  .  ^ 

will  overcome  ing  efforts  of  Organized  selfish- 
ness. AVe  do  not  need  first  to 
convert  all  men  to  the  principle  of  the  Golden 
Rule.  We  shall  meet  bad  organizations  with 
better  and  stronger  ones.  In  some  instances 
we  shall  capture  the  old  organizations  with 
the  new  temper.  The  men  of  the  Golden 
Rule  in  a  mercantile  corporation  will  make 


i 


\ 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Organization.      55 

their  joint  influence  felt  to  change  injurious 
methods,  to  do  justice  toward  employees,  to 
alter  a  selfish  attitude  to  a  friendly  one.  The 
men  of  the  Golden  Rule  in  a  labor  union  will 
unite  to  require  the  use  of  only  righteous 
means  to  right  their  wrongs.  They  will  in- 
sist that  employers  and  capitalists  are  also 
men  like  themselves.  There  will  be  new  or- 
ganizations directly  governed  by  the  Golden 
Rule.  If  the  competition  of  the  reckless 
grinds  downwards,  if  the  land  laws  that  fitted 
a  pioneer  age  cease  to  fit  our  crowded  popu- 
lation and  make  worse  inequalities,  if  wealth 
concentrated  in  a  few  hands  means  degrada- 
tion of  the  people,  the  Golden  Rule  will  not 
only  bind  individuals  to  protest  against  the 
evil,  but  to  band  themselves  together  and  to 
discover  means  to  change  the  evil  to  good. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  there  is  no 
binding  power  in  organization  so  great  as  the 
Golden  Rule.     While  selfishness 

.  -       .^       .      .         .  -.  The  binding 

With    Its   jealousies     splits    men     power  of 

r  •        ^^^  .  «  friendliness. 

apart,    friendliness    unites    them. 
A  few  men  bound  with  this  kind  of  tie, 
like  the  Macedonian  phalanx,  will  work  won- 
ders.    All  the  great  reforms  are  a  witness  of 
the  superb  power  of  the  devoted  few.     The 
success  of  the  Golden  Rule  in  organization 


' 
) 


56 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


on  a  large  scale  has  not  yet  even  been  tried. 

Moreover,  the  characteristic  method  of  the 

Golden  Rule  is  profound,  subtle,  and  marvel- 

ously  effective.  It  does  not  fight 
Jfj^s!^^     evil  with  evil,  hatred  with  hatred, 

wrong  by  doing  an  opposite 
wrong.  It  fights  evil  with  good,  by  persua- 
sion, by  fairness,  by  good  temper,  by  expect- 
ing the  best  of  men  instead  of  their  worst. 
As  in  the  story  of  the  traveler's  cloak,  it  does 
not,  like  the  north  wind,  drive  the  man  to 
fold  himself  more  closely  about,  but  it  acts 
like  the  genial  sun  to  make  him  take  off  the 
cloak  of  his  selfishness.  This  method  is  yet 
quite  new  in  the  world.  But  those  who  have 
experimented  and  watched  its  working  look 
for  developments  in  it  as  great  and  rapid  as  we 
already  have  seen  in  the  material  world  by  the 
application  of  the  new  powers  of  steam  and 
electricity. 

We  rise  to  a   better  conception  of  the 
meaning  and  office  of  the  church.     Grant 

that  the  true  church  is  made  up  of 

Jahe  dlur^hf  ^^^  ^^^  womeu  who  unite  to  ex- 
press '*the  faith  of  Jesus  Christ.** 
And  what  is  the  faith  of  Jesus?  Jesus'  faith 
surely  was,  that  this  is  not  the  devil' s  world, 
not    a    material    world,    not    an    agnostic 


'ISfi 


■ 


I 


i 


i 


Hie  Golden  Rule  in  Organization.      57 

world  of  which  man  can  know  nothing,  but 
it  is  God's  world.  Jesus'  faith  was  in  the 
Golden  Rule,  that  it  would  work,  that 
whoever  would  trust  it  the  Eternal  Love 
would  support.  Jesus  sealed  this  intensely 
practical  faith  with  his  life  and  his  death. 
Those  who  looked  on  cried  out,  *  *  We  told 
you  so.  The  Golden  Rule  is  brought  to 
naught."  On  the  contrary,  Jesus'  death 
proved  to  usher  in  the  dawn  of  a  new  era 
of  human  progress.  We  have  henceforward 
the  key  to  understand  history.  All  history 
is  the  constant  march  of  the  forces  that  bring 
the  Golden  Rule  to  triumph,  the  defeat  of 
every  short-lived  scheme,  policy,  industrial 
system,  or  political  government  that  thwarts 
the  growing  good  of  man. 

Whatever  significance  the  church  has  had 
in  the  past  has  been  in  the  fact  that  under- 
neath its  gigantic  establishments 
has  been  hidden  the  vital  germ  u  his  bee?  ^ 
of  this  spirit  of  brotherhood.  But  tsftmustbe?^ 
hitherto  the  good  spirit  has  been 
mainly  in  the  hearts  of  individuals.  The  or- 
ganization has  rarely  expressed  the  Christian 
spirit,  but  it  has  expressed  almost  everything 
else,  men's  ambition,  their  avarice,  their 
superstitions,  their  speculations.     The  church 


i 


58 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


has  never  tried  to  see  what  it  could  do  as  an 
organized  effort  to  bring  the  Golden  Rule 
into  effect,  to  spread  its  sway,  to  persuade 
men  to  adopt  it. 

To-day  the  world  is  getting  ready  to  judge 

the  church  by  this  test  and  no  other.     Does 

the  church    make  men  friends? 

nobfJ^estf  Do  the  men  and  women  of  the 
church  conduct  their  business, 
their  farms,  shops,  railroads,  and  factories  in 
the  spirit  of  friendliness,  that  is,  in  the  spirit 
of  Christ  ?  Do  they  bring  up  their  children 
to  take  the  Golden  Rule  as  the  law  of  their 
lives  ?  Is  this  the  end  of  their  Sunday-school 
training,  and  is  that  Sunday-school  alone 
thought  to  be  a  success  which  commits  its 
youth  to  the  brave  and  noble  ventures  of  the 
Golden  Rule?  In  short,  does  the  church 
head  the  organized  forward  movement  .,of 
mankind  toward  a  Christian  civilization  ? 

How  can  we  believe  in  God  unless  we  keep 
the  chief  law  of  his  kingdom  ?  The  Great 
Engineer  shows  us  the  plan  of  the 
b^  a^chrildan.  bridge  that  binds  earth  and  heaven 
together.  He  lays  down  the  law 
of  the  bridge.  He  trusts  the  weight  of  his 
life  to  it.  Shall  we  dare  to  call  ourselves 
Christians  and  not  do  the  same  ? 


\ 


QUESTIONS. 

What  parables  of  Jesus  show  what  he  thought 
of  those  who  held  the  theory  of  the  good  life  with- 
out the  practice?  Matt.  21:28-32  ;  25:31-46  ;  Mark. 
4:3-8,  15-20. 

Can  any  one  evade  the  laws  of  the  universe  in 
chemistry,  in  farming,  in  building  ?  Give  illustra- 
tions. Of  what  is  the  outward  universe  a  grand 
parable  ? 

Do  you  believe  that  the  Golden  Rule  is  binding 
on  all  men  ?  Do  you  think  that  any  one  can  afford 
to  break  it  ?  Show  how  to  deny  this  is  to  doubt 
that  this  is  God's  world. 

I. 

W^ere  do  you  first  find  the  Golden  Rule  ?  Lev. 
19:18.  Where  does  Jesus  lay  it  down?  Matt. 
7:12;  22:39.  What  did  Jesus  do  with  this  rule, 
besides  teaching  it  ? 

What,  besides  obedience,  does  one  need  in  or- 
der to  keep  the  Golden  Rule  ?  Illustrate  the  need 
of  judgment,  etc.  Show  the  same  need  in  keep- 
ing other  laws,  as  for  instance,  in  building. 

What  difficult  passages  can  you  find  in  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount  ?  How  do  men  explain  away 
Jesus*  meaning? 

What  is  the  great  characteristic  of  the  Christian 
life?    Answer,— \\.  is  a  new  spirit,  or  temper.   Can 

59 


6o        The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 

you  put  this  new  spirit  into  one  form  of  words? 
How  does  Paul  sum  it  up?  i  Cor.  13:13.  Where 
do  you  find  another  beautiful  form  of  the  same 
thought?  I  John  4:7,  16,  21.  What  does  Jesus 
teach  about  the  action  of  love?  Matt.  5:43-48. 
What  does  he  here  mean  by  being  ** perfect*'? 
Answer. — Men  usually  love  those  that  love  them  ; 
but  God  loves  and  blesses  all ;  his  children  ought 
to  love  as  he  does,  with  an  all-round  love.  Show 
how  real  friendliness  sometimes  treats  the  thief, 
the  tramp,  the  child.  What  does  true  love  always 
seek? 


II. 


Where  do  all  men  agree  that  the  Golden  Rule 
works  well  ?  Illustrate  how  selfishness  spoils  the 
home  life.  Where  do  you  find  the  great  mottoes 
of  the  home?    Matt.  20:28 ;  Acts  20:35  ;  Phil.  2:3. 

Who  are  those  who  are  loved  best  in  the  home  ? 
Who  seem  to  get  most  enjoyment  out  of  the  home 
life  ?    Think  of  instances  to  prove  your  answer. 

Do  you  think  that  love  ought  to  be  blind  ?  Why 
not?  What  harm  do  you  sometimes  see  from  un- 
thinking love  ? 

Did  you  ever  know  brothers  or  sisters  to  treat 
each  other  unkindly  in  business  matters?  What 
does  the  world  say  of  such  brothers  ?  Did  you 
ever  know  happiness  to  come  to  anyone  from  such 
treatment  ? 

Did  you  ever  know  a  real  friend  to  take  advan- 
tage of  another?  What  is  the  rule  for  keeping 
one's  friends  ? 

What  rule  generally  holds  good  among  members 


Questions, 


6r 


of  lodges  and  brotherhoods  ?    What  code  of  honor 
do  you  discover  in  the  Stock  Exchange  ? 

What  do  men  often  say  in  complaint  of  their  treat- 
ment by  fellow  Christians  ?  Is  such  complaint  fair  ? 
What  is  Jesus'  teaching  about  the  relation  of  Chris- 
tians to  one  another?  John  13:35;  14:21.  Can  a 
Christian  explain  this  teaching  away  ?  What  beau- 
tiful parable  shows  Jesus'  idea  of  our  common 
humanity?    Luke  10:25-38. 

Of  whom  does  **  the  real  church  "  consist  ?  Give 
examples.  Why  do  not  individuals  of  this  sort 
control  the  church  ?  Is  the  proportion  of  this  sort 
increasing  ? 

How  far  already  does  the  Golden  Rule  have 
sway  in  the  world  ?  In  what  regions  of  life  can  we 
not  get  on  without  it  ? 

III. 

Is  selfishness  an  evil  thing  within  the  animal 
world  ?  What  mighty  principle  works  to  counter- 
act selfishness  ?  Tell  any  stories  to  illustrate  the 
working  of  the  cooperative  idea.  How  does  Jesus' 
life  illustrate  this  idea  ?  Tell  instances  of  persons 
whose  pleasure  was  in  serving  others. 

What  is  your  ideal  of  the  noblest  kind  of  min- 
ister ?  Tell  something  of  the  story  of  John  Wes- 
ley. Read  Chaucer's  description  of  the  good 
priest  in  **The  Canterbury  Tales." 

Describe  the  best  teacher  of  whom  you  know.  * 
What  qualities  make  a  good  teacher  ? 

Why  ought  a  physician  to  be  a -man  of  the 
Golden  Rule  ?  Is  it  to  a  physician's  disadvantage 
to  be  this  kind  of  man  ?  Give  instances  to  illus- 
trate your  answer. 


62 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


Will  artists  or  musicians  succeed  better  for  being 
selfish  ?  Name  some  of  the  great  masters  in  art 
and  literature.  Where  does  their  best  strength 
come  from  ? 

What  sort  of  mechanic  or  mason  would  you 
choose  ?  Other  things  being  equal,  why  would  a 
man  of  the  Golden  Rule  be  worth  more  than  a 
selfish  man  ? 

Is  it  against  the  interest  of  a  farmer  to  live  by 
the  Golden  Rule  ?    How  will  the  rule  help  him  ? 

Give  reasons  to  show  how  the  keeping  of  the 
Golden  Rule  adds  value  to  labor.  Show  the 
greater  efficiency  of  a  factory  manned  by  genuine 
Christians. 

What  type  of  woman  would  one  choose  as  the 
most  valuable  housekeeper,  domestic,  or  nurse? 
Give  instances  in  your  acquaintance  of  the  invalu- 
able quality  of  the  work  of  those  women  who  live 
by  the  Golden  Rule. 

Name  the  greatest  men  who  have  ever  served 
our  country.  Does  selfishness  or  patriotism  make 
men  great?  What  kind  of  men  do  the  people  ad- 
mire most  in  public  life  ?  Illustrate  how  "  the  Be- 
atitudes *'  are  true  to  th^  facts  of  life. 

Do  the  boys  in  their  games  really  succeed  who 
break  the  rules  of  the  game  ?  What  is  true  suc- 
cess in  the  game  ?  Do  you  think  that  men  can 
break  the  rules  of  life  and  succeed  ?  Who  awards 
success?    Ps.  96  ;  Is.  40;  26-31. 

IV. 

What  complaints  do  men  make  of  the  present 
competitive  system  of  trade  ?    If  this  system  is 


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Questions. 


63 


contrary  to  the  Golden  Rule,  what  would  a  true 
man  have  to  do  ? 

What  is  the  grand  net  result  of  most  trade  ?  Are 
you  most  injured,  or  served,  on  the  whole,  in  the 
bulk  of  your  transactions  ? 

Do  you  know  persons  who  deal  on  the  principles 
of  the  Golden  Rule  ?  Is  it  a  disadvantage,  or  an 
advantage,  to  be  known  as  one  who  treats  his  cus- 
tomers with  friendliness?  Where  ought  a  true 
man  to  trade — with  the  untrustworthy  who  tempt 
the  public  with  "bargains,**  or  with  the  honorable 
and  friendly  ? 

Do  you  believe  that  "  all  things  work  together 
for  good  "  ?  What  tendency  of  this  kind  can  you 
trace  in  the  realm  of  business  ?  Do  you  think,  if 
all  men  kept  the  Golden  Rule,  that  the  average 
buyer  would  get  more  than  he  gets  now  ?  Would 
the  average  seller  get  more  ?  How  much  higher 
do  you  think  the  average  wages  would  be  ?  What 
would  be  the  chief  gain  in  keeping  the  rule  ? 

Show  the  distinction  between  brute  competition 
and  the  emulation  of  men.  Give  instances  of  men 
and  women  who  try  to  give  the  utmost  service. 
Whom  did  Jesus  call  the  greatest  in  the  new  sys- 
tem?   Luke  22:24-28. 

How  can  you  translate  the  law  of  "supply  and 
demand  *'  into  beneficent  terms  ?  What  is  the  atti- 
tude of  selfish  men  in  a  bargain  ?  What  is  the  atti- 
tude of  good  men?  Illustrate  these  different  atti*- 
tudes. 

There  is  cheap  labor  in  the  South.  Is  it  wrong,, 
or  beneficent  to  start  factories  there  ?  What  would 
you  think  if  the  factories  made  great  profits,  with- 
out raising  the  wages  of  their  working  people  ? 


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64 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


Does  the  Golden  Rule  require  any  one  to  pay 
more  than  a  thing  is  worth  ?  What  would  be  the 
result  if  an  employer  should  run  his  mill  at  a  loss 
in  order  to  pay  high  wages  ? 

What  great  inequalities  can  you  see  in  the  pres- 
ent industrial  system?  What  was  said  of  such 
things  in  the  Bible  times?  Is.  5:8;  Amos  2:6; 
3:10 ;  4:1 ;  James  5:1-5.  What  is  the  cure  of  such 
evils  ?  Can  you  think  of  any  better  industrial  sys- 
tem than  we  have  now  ?  If  so,  would  it  keep  men 
from  being  selfish  ?  What  would  happen,  with  the 
present  system,  if  men  would  keep  the  Golden 
Rule? 

V. 

Why  are  many  not  ready  to  begin  to  keep  the 
Golden  Rule  ?  Will  the  Golden  Rule  work  when 
applied  toward  unfriendly  people  ?  Do  selfishness 
and  greed  work  well  when  shown  toward  such 
people  ?    What  does  Jesus  say  ?    Matt.  5:44. 

What  do  you  think  of  men's  excuses  for  break- 
ing Jesus'  rule  ?  Is  honesty  the  best  policy  ?  Is  it 
well  or  not  to  treat  all  men  with  friendliness  ? 

Is  the  best  thing  the  cheapest?  What  element 
of  venture  is  to  be  found  in  life  ?  Show  how  this 
element  makes  life  interesting.  To  what  may  we 
liken  Jesus? 

Will  the  man  who  keeps  the  Golden  Rule  be 
likely  to  grow  rich  as  fast  as  if  he  sometimes  broke 
it?    If  not,  why? 

Can  you  think  of  any  kinds  of  business  out  of 
which  the  Golden  Rule  would  drive  a  man  ?  Can 
you  think  of  methods  which  a  true  man  would 
have  to  stop  ? 


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Questions. 


65 


What  ought  to  be  done  with  the  higher  salaries 
and  the  dividends  in  a  mill,  when  the  wages  of  the 
working  people  are  cut  down  ? 

Name  men  whom  the  Golden  Rule  has  required 
to  risk  unpopularity.  What  reforms  to-day  involve 
a  venture  for  those  who  assist  them  ?  What  com- 
fortable word  does  Jesus  say  to  those  who  take 
such  risks  ?    Matt.  5:10-11. 

What  costly  advantages  have  the  blood  and  pains 
of  the  martyrs  and  heroes  bought  for  our  age  ? 
Is  any  one  in  our  age  likely  to  starve  for  obeying 
the  Golden  Rule  ?  What  was  thought  about  this 
in  ancient  times  ?  Ps.  37:25.  What  loss  do  chil- 
dren suffer  who  are  brought  up  by  selfish  parents  ? 

What  do  you  think  of  the  passage  in  i  Tim. 
4:8?    Illustrate  in  answer. 

Suppose  the  keeping  of  the  Golden  Rule  proves 
costly  or  dangerous  ;  what  shall  a  man  do  about 
it?  Luke  14:25-31.  Do  good  men  ever  give  a 
different  answer?  What  is  the  "faith  *'  of  an  en- 
gineer? What  is  the  ** faith"  of  religion?  Give 
instances  in  memorable  lives,  for  instance,  Luther. 

VL 

What  do  the  thoughtless  call  success?  What 
opposite  fact  have  we  discovered  in  the  home? 
Where  does  Jesus  put  the  emphasis  ?  Matt.  6:33. 
What  shall  we  call  the  law  of  success  ? 

How  does  selfishness  hurt  the  health?  How 
does  the  Golden  Rule  take  away  anxiety?  To 
what  office  does  Jesus  liken  a  good  man  ?  Luke 
12:42.  What  is  the  business  of  a  steward  or 
trustee?     i  Cor.  4:2.     What  beautiful  figure  is 


66 


The  Golden  Rule  in  Business. 


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found  in  Deut.  33:27  of  the  support  that  comes  to 
the  faithful  sons  of  God  ? 

Show  wherein  Jesus*  life  is  an  example  of  suc- 
cess.    Note  Matt.  13:44 ;  John  14:27  ;   15:11 ;  Gal. 

5:22. 

In  what  does  full  life  consist  ?  Illustrate  in  the 
case  of  the  body.  Show  how  that  man  must  suf- 
fer whose  body  and  mind  are  active,  but  whose 
faith,  hope,  and  love  are  not  exercised. 

Tell  instances  of  the  men  and  women  who  have 
tried  Jesus'  rule  and  found  it  to  work.  What  hap- 
pens to  the  moral  and  spiritual  health  when  one 
breaks  the  law  ?  Show  how  the  Golden  Rule  is 
the  central  fact  of  education. 

VII. 

Why  must  moral  and  religious  work  begin 
with  the  individual?  Illustrate  the  complications 
of  modem  life.  Is  the  individual  always  free  to 
do  right  ?    Is  he  equally  free  to  correct  wrongs? 

In  what  direction  does  modern  civilization  move  ? 
What  good  does  cooperation  do  ?  For  what  end 
are  many  combinations  now  organized  ? 

How  does  selfishness  work  in  organizations? 
What  has  to  be  mixed  with  selfishness  in  order  to 
keep  organizations  together?  How  does  public 
opinion  act  to  overthrow  dangerous  combinations? 

How  is  the  spirit  of  chivalry  and  devotion  shown 
in  the  trades  unions  ? 

Name  organizations  that  are  purely  for  carrying 
the  Golden  Rule  into  effect.  Do  you  belong  to 
any  such  associations  ?  Can  a  man  be  a  Christian 
and  not  help  in  such  kind  of  effort  ? 

How   can  bad    organizations    be   overcome? 


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Questions. 


67 


Which  is  the  stronger,  the  union  of  the  bad  or 
that  of  the  good  ?  Illustrate  the  power  of  the  good 
when  they  combine.  Tell  the  story  of  William 
Wilberforce  and  the  abolition  of  the  slave  trade. 

What  weaknesses  does  selfishness  show  in  organ- 
ization ?  Is  anything  in  the  world  braver  or  more 
steadfast  than  love?    See  i  Cor.  13:4-8. 

What  is  the  characteristic  method  of  the  New 
Testament  in  fighting  evil  ?  Rom.  12:21.  Did  you 
ever  know  this  method,  when  intelligently  tried, 
to  fail  ?  Tell  some  story  to  illustrate  the  use  of 
this  method. 

How  do  Jesus'  life  and  death  illustrate  his 
faith  in  the  Golden  Rule  ?  Which  has  proved  to 
conquer— Pilate's  and  Herod's  force,  or  Jesus' 

love? 

What  has  been  the  great  fault  with  the  church  in 
the  past?  What  has  it  failed  as  a  body  to  do? 
Do  you  think  that  Christians  generally  have  be- 
lieved in  the  religion  of  the  Golden  Rule  ?  Matt. 
7:22-23. 

What  is  doubtless  the  true  test  of  the  reality  of 
the  church?  Matt.  6:20.  What  is  the  test  of  the 
usefulness  of  the  Sunday-school  ?  What  new  and 
nobler  future  do  you  see  for  the  church  ? 

What  fine  passage  in  Eph.  4: 4-17  sets  the  stand- 
ard of  the  good  life  ? 


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